Cycling Alaska to Colombia and other travels

Spain

We have arrived in France, a cyclists dream with miles and miles of cycle paths, campsites everywhere, some with a discount for people arriving on bicycle, and you can’t beat the bread and cheese picnics. After a few rainy days in Spain, crossing the border we have had day after day of sunshine. So we have really enjoyed a good few weeks of very laid back cycling!

Cycling past field after field of sunflowers, even with a head wind it makes you smile.

Our last day in Spain, we arrived in the small town of Hondarribia to find ourselves in the middle of a medieval fair!

Everywhere was in full Medieval style.

Watching the surf in Biarritz.

Cycling the coastal bike route , you can ride the whole coast on trails, which is fantastic. However, we did find ourselves needing days on the roads as well due to the monotony of miles of pine trees!!

Rows and rows of pine trees and piles and piles of wood!

We have really enjoyed the long evenings, after so many months of early sunsets.

Dune du Pilat, near to Arcachon, the highest sand dune in Europe and good fun to run and slide down.

One of the many oyster huts at Arcachon, we stayed near here with a lovely family who stopped by us on the side of the road and invited us to stay for the night and for dinner. The whole trip it has been amazing the kindness people have shown towards us.

Waiting for the ferry over to Cap Ferret.

Some of the bike paths a little bit narrow!

We still enjoy the fresh fruit and veg at the markets and we were lucky to pass a lot of farmers markets in different towns.

Fresh herbs.

Even when we left the cycle tracks the roads were quiet and lovely for riding.

Map reading but a good photo chance! The little villages and towns in France are lovely for cycling, passed beautiful old farmhouses and barns.

The Transporter bridge into Rochefort, built-in 1898 and now used by cyclists and walkers to cross the Charente river. It is a movable bridge with a gondola slung from a huge metal frame, fewer than two dozen have been made and now only twelve of these bridges are still in use.

The harbour entrance of La Rochelle.

La Rochelle, we were lucky to be here on the summer solstice which in France is celebrated with live music in the streets.